Church of the Annunciation, Marble Arch, London

“SHARING OUR FUTURE”

THE ANNUNCIATION MARBLE ARCH

Heritage Manager

Region: London

Fee: up to £40,000 inc per annum

Job Type: Part-time, 4 day/week (18-month contract)

Closing Date: 31/10/2025 with shortlisted interviews in early November

Link / Contact details to apply:

Please email your CV and a covering letter to Fr Lincoln Harvey at lincoln.harvey@gmail.com, with the Email Header “Heritage Manager role”

Project Overview

The Annunciation Marble Arch has received Development Funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for the “Sharing Our Future” project. We seek to appoint a Heritage Manager to oversee and co-ordinate the Development Phase, which is set to run for 18 months. A Design Team, QS, and specialist consultants will need to be competitively appointed to complete a list of required document/studies for the Delivery application. Design development needs to be completed to RIBA Stage 3, Faculty, planning, and consents need to be in place, and all partnership funding must be raised or pledged.

The Annunciation Marble Arch is a large Grade II* listed building designed by Sir Walter Tapper, a leading 20thC architect. It is on Historic England’s ‘At Risk’ Register. The building is hampered by several problems and barriers. The project will make inroads into improving the church’s condition through repair and conservation of the fabric. There will be a focus on the deteriorating nave and baptistry roof, addressing windows and high-level stonework, with re-ordering and access improvements.

The church is a popular and increasingly well-used church close to Oxford Street in London’s West End. The “Sharing our Future” project focuses on creating a hub to benefit the D/deaf community with whom the church is now continuously in dialogue. Activities have been piloted and links forged for a two-year activity plan directed towards providing skills training and other heritage activities for the D/deaf, targeting c.2,000 D/deaf people annually. The Heritage Manager will therefore work closely with a part-time Community Support Worker (CSW) whose primary role will be to ensure the project is delivered with a seamless overlay of the participation of the D/deaf community. The BSL qualified Community Support Worker will provide communication support at a range of meetings and events to participants with varying degrees of hearing loss. The Heritage Manager will also work closely with all project stakeholders and partners, including, primarily, the Project Activity Planners.

Summary Programme

· Oct 25 – March 27: Development Phase

· March 27: Submit Delivery bid

· June 27: Delivery Decision

P/T Heritage Manager: Executive Summary

The successful candidate will provide leadership for this BSL-focused Project reporting to the PCC, which may delegate line management responsibilities to the Chair of the Steering Group Committee involved in strategic planning, management, execution, and coordination with internal and external stakeholders. In order to achieve the goals of The Annunciation, he/she will oversee design development to RIBA Stage 3 and oversee the preparation of key documents.

The Heritage Manager will be a strategic thinker with an understanding of the planning and delivery of projects funded by the Heritage Fun. They should have a strong background in project co-ordination and possess the ability to move adeptly between big picture thinking and day-to-day operations, where it will be necessary, for example, to process his/her own admin.

The Heritage Manager will be comfortable working in a start-up environment, being able to demonstrate experience of extensive community engagement, as well as an understanding of and empathy with the ambitions and vision of the Annunciation, Marble Arch and the needs of a Grade 11* listed building. They will have a strong commitment to the principles of equality, diversity and inclusion. We are also looking for a candidate that has experience of working with the D/deaf community preferably, and will therefore be well positioned to work successfully to integrate key partnerships with the BSL community with the help of the specialist Community Support Worker.

The task will be to ensure the project is delivered within time and to budget in accordance with an agreed programme, budget, and checklist of deliverables, as well as working closely with all project stakeholders and partners, including the D/deaf community.

Tasks

• To become acquainted with all project documentation and acquire a sufficient knowledge of the detailed complexities of the objectives of the Project to be able to oversee it to a successful conclusion.
• To be proficient in Excel, and be able to ensure budgets and cashflows are kept up to date establishing an effective cost management system to approve consultant payments/ invoices and maintaining a record of expenditure.
• To maintain a project risk register updated monthly in conjunction with the Design Team and other consultants.
• To follow closely a detailed Project Grant Chart, encompassing all Project milestones.
• To establish other project management systems and procedures that ensure the smooth running of the Project, presenting them to the Project Steering Group for approval and then implementing them.
• To ensure all members of the Project Steering Group are aware of the tasks and responsibilities attributed to them and also to the Design Team.
• To establish a meeting structure, laying down procedures for convening, chairing, attendance, function, frequency and responsibility for recording of meetings and circulation of information (Design Team and Project Steering Group meetings) and to act as the focal point of contact between the Project Board and the Design Team.
• To establish effective communications and a clear and visible distribution of information. Of particular importance is a requirement to have regular meetings with the Chair of the PCC and the Sharing Our Future Steering Group Chair.
• To participate in regular Design Team meetings to monitor progress and identify any problems or issues.
• To develop a Project Change Control strategy, establishing an appropriate method for managing and controlling change on the project.
• To check that all appointed consultants and contractors fulfil their contractual obligations.
• To work with the BSL Community Support Worker to build effective relationships with BSL stakeholders and partners associated with the Project.
• To procure all consultants required, compiling tender enquiries, identifying possible tenderers, agreeing tender lists, managing the consultant tender process, coordinating the evaluation of tender submissions and compiling tender reports.
• To ensure consultant contracts/ letters of appointment are prepared, providing feedback to unsuccessful tenderers if required.
• To coordinate and review all financial matters with the appointed Quantity Surveyor and Annunciation Treasurer and to ensure that all necessary NLHF financial requirements and conditions are met.
• To oversee the Development Phase Evaluation

Skills and attributes

• A strong empathy with the D/deaf Community.
• Exceptional communication skills, including the ability to speak and write effectively, compellingly, and persuasively.
• A commitment to leading real lasting change for the Annunciation and resulting implementation of change/improvement processes.
• Ability to manage multiple projects while managing competing priorities.
• Ability to manage budgets and allocate resources effectively and responsibly.
• Ability to manage volunteers and deploying them on the project where required.

Qualifications and Experience

• Relevant professional qualification(s) (or equivalent experience).
• Demonstrable ongoing commitment to professional development.
• Experience of working with places of worship and or heritage sites to deliver specific outcomes, and preferably experience of working with the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
• Experience of working with a wide range of partners across sectors, at national, regional and local levels.
• Experience of delivering regeneration initiatives and projects.
• An ability to demonstrate a good understanding of current conservation principles and techniques.
• Demonstrable experience of procuring and managing consultants and contractors and managing successful contract negotiations.
• A sound general business understanding including an appreciation of current market trends and activities in the heritage sector.

If you are D/deaf and would like to apply for this role we can offer an informal conversation about the role via zoom - and can also provide a BSL interpreter for that conversation. If someone wishes to apply via BSL in a video recording, we will accept that form of application. We welcome all applications from a wide range of candidates and are especially keen to hear from candidates with BSL backgrounds and whose backgrounds are currently under-represented in the heritage sector. We are an inclusive organization and actively promote equality of opportunity for all with the right mix of talent, skills and potential. Selection for roles will be based on individual merit alone and there shall be no discrimination on the basis of age, disability, sex and gender, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage/civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity, or sexual orientation.

Acknowledgement

Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK’s heritage. Sharing our Future is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to create the post of Heritage Manager for this project.